How to Book a Celebrity for an Event

Someday you may be tasked with the assignment of tapping a local celebrity or VIP to participate in a special event that you are coordinating. You may scratch your head and wonder: Where do I start?

For any successful event or campaign, research is at the top of the priority list. Think about the event or organization and brainstorm ideas about who would be relevant. Think about the interests of your organization or who the audience is and what local celebrity would resonate. Then, brainstorm ideas about local celebs or VIPs with members of your organization working on the special event.

The next step is to research this pool of individuals and find out what their interests are. Go to the individual’s website and look at their bio. Ask the question, “How would participating in our special event benefit this person, or support their interests?” The local celeb’s interests and what the event or organization stands for should align and be a good match.

After whittling the pool down to a few choices, a next step would be to contact the celebrity or their scheduling team and find out availability of the person in question for your event. You may find out if they require compensation and, if so, make sure their fee is in line with your budget.

Make an appointment with the VIP to speak to them in person. Face-to-face communication is invaluable, and to get a commitment, it is a good idea to present your thoughts in person in a clear and concise manner. Pitch the idea and help the VIP understand why this would be a win-win for them and for your event.

Finally, when the local VIP attends and speaks at your event, make sure he or she has any needed assistance. Provide them with advance details about parking, attire and an agenda communicating where they are to be and when. And reiterate what they will be required to do, to help ensure success for the local VIP and for your organization.

What steps have you taken to land a VIP at your event? Tell us in the comments below or tweet your responses to us using the hashtag #mcgblog.